A local Liberal Democrat councillor has expressed dismay that Haringey’s Labour run council has closed Muswell Hill Youth Club until further notice due to staff shortages.

This closure also comes shortly after the highly critical Ofsted Report into Haringey Youth Service, which labelled it ‘inadequate’ and the range of provision ‘unsatisfactory’, awarding it with a Grade 1 -‘a service that does not deliver minimum requirements for users.’

Cllr Gail Engert (Muswell Hill ward) comments:

“It beggars belief that this Labour Council cannot provide staff to keep open the only youth facility that Haringey provides in the west of the borough. This is particularly shocking after the damning Ofsted Report on Haringey youth services that raises serious concerns borough-wide.

“Closing the youth centre so there is nowhere for young people to go just leaves the police to pick up the pieces of youth disaffection. Local Lib Dem councillors are continually highlighting the lack of youth provision in their wards but under this Labour administration instead of getting better, things are only getting worse.”

With growing concerns over local NHS services, Haringey’s Liberal Democrat councillors are fuming at a letter received from a junior official in response to a letter from Haringey’s Overview and Scrutiny Committee to the Health Secretary, Patricia Hewitt. The terse reply was signed by an official from a Customer Care Centre

Haringey’s Overview and Scrutiny Committee had written to the Minister to draw attention to the severe pressure being put on the Haringey Primary Care Trust (PCT) by the London Strategic Health Authority, which is regularly dipping into PCT budgets to bail out London Acute Hospital Trusts. Services have been cut, staff moral is low and there are fears of more cuts being made in a borough with some of the most intense pockets of deprivation in the UK.

The response has cause anger, with its dismissive tone and refusal to address any of the central issues raised by the Committee.

Lib Dem Health spokesperson Cllr Richard Wilson comments:

“Haringey experiences severe health inequalities and it is impossible for the PCT to provide and plan for services in this uncertain financial climate. Millions have already been grabbed from their budget with more on the way next year. Hewitt’s response demonstrates the contempt this Labour Government has for the people that pay for the NHS”.

Cllr David Winskill, who drafted the original letter, adds:

“To get what looks like a stock reply from someone in a Customer Service Centre is appalling. Residents in Haringey have the right to expect ministers to take their concerns seriously. Colleagues on Overview and Scrutiny were genuinely shocked at the patronising tone and brevity of the response.”

Liberal Democrat councillor Lyn Weber has warmly welcomed the news that burglary figures for the Crouch End ward in the London Borough of Haringey are going down. At a recent Safer Neighbourhoods Team meeting it was revealed that residential burglaries were down from 145 cases to 78 in the year to date.

“While not for a moment detracting from the terrible effect on the victims of burglary, and the still disturbing total number of offences, it is good news that criminal damage, common assault, wounding, theft of motor vehicles and motor vehicle interference – are all going down,” said Lyn.

With the winter months now well upon us, Crouch End councillors sounded a note of caution, with the news that theft from motor vehicles has increased. Cllr Weber is asking everyone to think about the risk of crime, and not leave property in cars that could attract thieves.

She adds: “We all need to take police advice – and reduce the risk of property theft by removing satellite navigation systems, Christmas presents – and anything else which is on view in your car for the common thief who just can’t resist. Take your gear with you – and let’s spoil the thief’s Christmas for a change.”

Haringey Lib Dems have slammed the Labour Mayor’s choice of a BMW 7 series as the replacement of the official mayoral car.

The luxury purchase comes as the Haringey Council struggles to cut £2m from its budget- and merely a fortnight after Labour leaders signed the Nottingham Declaration, where they publicly committed to encourage Haringey residents to reduce their own greenhouse gas emissions.

The Lib Dems are pointing out that the cheapest ‘book’ price of a Series 7 BMW is £50,875 with a minimum 3 litre engine size, with the largest model having a 6 litre engine. Under urban driving even the most environmentally friendly of the Series 7 range does only 44 mpg.

Councillor Bob Hare, Lib Dem Environment Spokesperson comments:

“The replacement of the mayor’s vehicle would have been the ideal opportunity for Labour in Haringey to demonstrate its commitment to tackling the causes of climate change.

“It is disappointing that the Labour has chosen to put their own personal comfort and status before the environment. It shows their commitment is largely just warm words.”

Councillor Ed Butcher, Deputy Lib Dem Environment Spokesperson adds:

“This is hardly leading by example.It is difficult to see how our community partners will take the council’s pleas to be less polluting seriously when at the first opportunity they buy something just a few steps down from a Sherman tank on the pollution scale.

“It is a real worry how hollow Labour’s commitment is to the environment: a case of do as I say not as I do.”

A Liberal Democrat councillor has renewed a demand for an independent forensic investigation into The Bridge NDC Accounts.

Lib Dem Deputy Leader Wayne Hoban has been looking into serious allegations which suggest that the £50 million New Deal for Communities (NDC) regeneration project in Seven Sisters ward in Tottenham has not been appropriately managed by Labour-run Haringey Council.

Cllr Hoban has repeatedly asked both The Bridge NDC Director and Haringey Council to provide him with copies of audited accounts and auditor’s notes for the five year period from 2001 to 2005 – during which the project has been running – but has repeatedly been informed that no specific accounts are available.

Although Cllr Hoban’s request for an independent forensic investigation has been refused so far, he has renewed his demand. The move follows a recent press report (Metro, 6 th December 2006), which reported that a Walsall Council employee who worked for the regeneration team in Walsallwas sacked for revealing how millions of pounds of taxpayers money had been misspent. The employee won £650,000 for unfair dismissal from an employment tribunal after being sacked for revealing that a £50,000 grant had been wrongly paid, £100,000 had been used to balance the books of Walsall Social Services and also that an £850,000 payment ‘could not be accounted for’ during an audit.

Cllr Hoban states: “It is clear that many of the now proven allegations made about poor financial management and inappropriate spending of regeneration monies in Walsall were initially similar to concerns raised about Haringey’s NDC regeneration scheme. It has now been confirmed that large sums of regeneration monies has been has been misspent by another council. Haringey residents need to be reassured that allegations about similar financial mismanagement of The Bridge NDC regeneration spending programme are unfounded. In the absence of any properly audited NDC accounts, an independent financial audit of the accounts is essential to restore confidence in this multi-million pound project.”

Cllr Hoban further states: “In view of reported problems with the Walsall Council regeneration project, I have again written to the Haringey Council Chief Executive and the District Auditor to ask them to support my call for an independent forensic audit investigation of The Bridge NDC accounts.”

Lynne Featherstone, Lib Dem MP for Hornsey & Wood Green, together with Councillor Catherine Harris (Noel Park) and Councillor Ed Butcher (London Fire Brigade Authority Member) today opened Noel Park’s Safer Neighbourhood Team’s contact centre on Wood Green High Road.

Lynne Featherstone comments:

“Congratulations to the Noel Park Safer Neighbourhood Team for organising this great opportunity.It is fantastic to see such a successful local community venture which is a true partnership between local business and our police and fire services.

“The run up to Christmas will see the greatest numbers of shoppers visiting Wood Green and the High Road,so the contact centre will have an enormous impact.Prevention really is better than cure when it comes to both fire and crime,so the more people that take this on board the better, particularly over the Christmas period.”

Councillor Ed Butcher, Member of London Fire Brigade Authority and Liaison Member for Community Safety, was present and also comments:

“This is what local partnerships are all about.I hope as many people as possible will take five minutes out of the Christmas rush to find out how to protect themselves against fire and organise a home fire safety check.The fire safety message is certainly for life not just for Christmas.”

Liberal Democrats and residents are celebrating a campaigning victory, after news that Labour have backed down over the plans for a Controlled Parking Zone (CPZ) in Hornsey. Following the second phase of consultation confirming that there was almost no support for a CPZ in the area, Labour-run Haringey Council confirmed last night that they were being forced to abandon their plans.

Criticism of the way the Labour council has gone about consultation on the controversial plans continues to grow, with Liberal Democrat councillors renewing their calls for more detailed and tailored plans in other areas in which CPZs are planned.

Lib Dems say that, from the start, Labour have just not understood how to conduct a real consultation and they have missed a real opportunity to look at individual issues on a street-by-street basis. They favour a scheme designed to devise tailored solutions through working with the local community, saying that if early talks had taken place with local councillors and the local community, before any plans had been drawn-up, a lot of time and money could have been saved.

Martin Newton, Lib Dem Spokesperson for Traffic and Highways comments:

“We have been calling for Haringey Labour to properly consult with the community and to abandon the ‘one-size-fits-all’ approach to controlled parking schemes. It is a great shame that so much tax-payers’ money has been wasted by Labour on this when so few people wanted a CPZ in the first place.

“I hope that the Labour now comes to its senses and abandons these schemes where the local community respond that they do not want either a CPZ or pay-and-display parking scheme.

“The irony is that there are indeed some parking issues faced by residents – but Labour simply have no idea what they are. A real consultation is not one where plans are drawn up in a backroom and then presented for comment – it is where plans are drawn up in a process that involves residents in the first place.

“We are all affected by the environmental impact from all forms of transport, but the Labour Council’s approach, or any Labour aspirations for a borough-wide CPZ does not provide the solution.”

The winner of Lynne Featherstone MP’s second Annual Christmas card design competition has been announced this week.

It was the design from Jemima Hammett, aged 10 and from St. Mary’s Junior School, Hornsey, that topped the bill of the hundreds of entries from schools around the constituency.The theme for the competition was ‘Ally Pally at Christmas.’

Lynne Featherstone comments:

“Congratulations to Jemima as her design really stood out. I was particularly taken by the shepherd and sheep in front of the Palace, it would be quite a sight to see if you were out and about for a walk in the park!

“I hope the local children had as much fun drawing the pictures as I did judging them.Well done to everyone that took part.”

Liberal Democrats say that Haringey Council budget plans show vulnerable older and disabled people will bear the brunt of the Labour Council’s financial difficulties, with multi-million pound cuts planned to Social Services over the next four years.

Labour’s plans to slash back services and increase charges have just been scrutinised by councillors for the first time. Lib Dem councillors helped ensure the committee scrutinising the plans recommended that vital day centres did not close. Although Labour have already had to abandon the controversial plans to close drop-in centres for older people across the borough, a huge array of cuts remain in the budget plans, including:

·A £370,000 hike in charges for services such as home care and meals on wheels

·A cut in 79 residential care beds for older people

·The closure of the Haven day centre for older people

·Closure of the Keston day centre for people with learning disabilities

·Grants to voluntary sector service providers to be slashed by £1million a year

Cllr Richard Wilson, Lib Dem Spokesperson for Health and Social Services, said:

“Labour’s NHS cuts have left a massive £500,000 shortfall in Haringey’s social services budget and worsened the problem caused by huge overspending on projects such as Tech-Refresh. It is appalling that the most vulnerable elderly and disabled people will have their services cut because of Labour’s financial mismanagement.

“An incredible £370,000 hike in charges for home care and meals on wheels will squeeze many hard-pressed Haringey pensioners. It is incredibly cynical of Labour to freeze charges in the years before the local elections and then announce massive increases just a few months afterwards.”

Cllr Matt Davies said:

“Lib Dem councillors on the Scrutiny Committee argued these cuts were unacceptable. Thankfully Labour’s plans to close and merge day centres were rejected by the Committee, who recommended the Executive rethink these damaging proposals. Clearly Council overspending and NHS cuts have left a huge hole in the social services budget, but very vulnerable people rely on these services.”

Lib Dem colleagues are congratulating Councillor Carolyn Baker, councillor for Harringay ward, after giving birth to a beautiful baby girl.

Jenna Smith arrived on the 27th November weighing in at a healthy 8.5 pounds.

Baby, sister, mother and father are all doing very well and the family are delighted to welcome the new addition. The Lib Dems would like to wish Jenna and her family their very best wishes.